Sysca

Scottish Youth Strength & Conditioning Association. Sports Biomedicine students aiming to raise awareness of the benefits of Resistance training in youth.

SYSCA is an organisation founded as part of a 4th year Sports Biomedicine assignment. This information is merely advice and we are not a recognised organisation. That said, we still want to offer the best advice possible!

We're not just an association, we're a conversation! If you have any queries or questions don't hesitate to post on our wall or message the page!

Founding members, Andrew Hastings, Chloe Williamson and Isla Murgatroyd. We aim to raise awareness of the health benefits of resistance training in youths. While also debunking the myths surrounding it's supposed negative effects.

Our Mission Statement : Promote safe, fun and effective resistance training in youth.


The first thing that we have to clarify, what age is a ‘youth’. ‘Youth’ refers to all children and adolescents. This is anyone under the age of 18, who has not yet developed secondary sex characteristics (Lloyd et al, 2014).

So now we know our target age, what is resistance training? “specialised method of conditioning whereby an individual is working against a wide range of resistive loads to enhance health, fitness and performance” (Lloyd et al, 2014). Resistance training therefore encompasses all of the subgroups of resistance training, such as weightlifting, powerlifting etc. Meaning that a young person involved in resistance training will not necessarily be performing complex lifts, using a heavy weight.

What are some of the common misconceptions surrounding youth resistance training?

"My child will get hurt! "

There is a general view that resistance training is dangerous for children and adolescents. However there is no scientific data or evidence to support this claim. It is possible that freak accidents involving weightlifting may be the reason for this.

When resistance training is done correctly and under the close supervision of a properly qualified adult, the injury risk is actually very low. Hamill conducted a study in 1994 which aimed to assess the relative safety of weightlifting and weight training in British schools. He quantified the number of injuries into ‘Injuries per 100 participation hours’. He found that weighlifting (0. 0017) and weight training (0. 0035) had the lowest number of injuries per 100 hours of participation. However very popular team sports such as football (6. 20) and rugby (1. 92) had higher numbers of injuries for every 100 hours of participation (Hamill, 1994). This study confirms that as long as resistance training is carried out safely, it has a very low injury risk.

The National Strength and Conditioning Association released an updated position statement on youth resistance training in 2009. One of the possible benefits of resistance training which they identified was an increased resistance to sports related injuries such as muscle strains. But again, they emphasised that this would have to be an appropriate, sensible and properly observed program to be effective in reducing injury likelihood.

"My child’s development will be affected! "

Another concern which many parents voice about resistance training in youths is that they believe that the training will adversely affect growth and development through damage to bone growth plates. This concern may stem from retrospective reports which were published in the 1970s and 80s. However it was shown in these studies that improper lifting techniques, maximal lifts and lack of qualified adult supervision were again to blame (Faigenbaum et al, 2009).

No evidence exists which suggests that linear growth is adversely affected by resistance training. It actually appears that childhood may be the an excellent time to participate in resistance training, as it is now thought that the stress placed on the growth plates may be beneficial for bone formation and growth. An absence of resistance training in a youth may predispose them to long-term bone-health complications as they may not have built up adequate bone-mineral density (Lloyd et al, 2014).

"It’s a waste of time! "

Many people believe that if a youth participates in an adequate amount of physical activity such as athletics or football, they are getting all of the health benefits which they require. However the benefits of resistance training are great and varied. Organisations like the NHS recognise the benefits of resistance training, their recommendations for youth state that “on three days a week, these activities should involve exercises for strong muscles, such as push-ups, and exercises for strong bones, such as jumping and running”.

Perhaps the most obvious adaptation to resistance training is an increase in strength. Some people believe that the body of a youth cannot be trained to increase strength above the usual strength increases experienced with growth and maturation. However many studies, including one by Faigenbaum et al in 1993, showed that this is not the case and observed significant increases in strength.

Other benefits of resistance training include:
• Improved cardiovascular risk profile, combat obesity and it’s associated conditions
• Improved bone health, helps essential bone formation
• Improved psychosocial health and wellbeing, improved mood and improved attitude towards health and fitness
• Improved motor skills and sports performance
• Reduction in sports-related injuries
(Faigenbaum et al, 2009)

Many organisations and government bodies recognise the benefits of resistance training for youths. And the common theme among the recommendations from expert organisations is that they whole-heartedly recommend resistance training in youths, however it should always be safe, enjoyable and under the supervision of a properly qualified adult.


References:


Faigenbaum, A. , Kraemer, W. , Blimkie, C. , Jeffreys, I. , Micheli, L. , Nitka, M. and Rowland, T. (2009). Youth Resistance Training: Updated Position Statement Paper From the National Strength and Conditioning Association. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 23, pp. S60-S79.

Faigenbaum, A. , Zaichkowsky, L. , Westcott, W. , Micheli, L. and Fehlandt, A. (1993). The Effects of a Twice-a-Week Strength Training Program on Children. Pediatric Exercise Science, pp. 339-346.

Hamill, B. (1994). Relative Safety of Weightlifting and Weight Training. J Strength Cond Res, 8(1), p. 53.

Lloyd, R. , Faigenbaum, A. , Stone, M. , Oliver, J. , Jeffreys, I. , Moody, J. , Brewer, C. , Pierce, K. , McCambridge, T. , Howard, R. , Herrington, L. , Hainline, B. , Micheli, L. , Jaques, R. , Kraemer, W. , McBride, M. , Best, T. , Chu, D. , Alvar, B. and Myer, G. (2013). Position statement on youth resistance training: the 2014 International Consensus. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 48(7), pp. 498-505.